Comfort
by OutSquash13
Summary: A story about Millie Appleby
_**Murruroo, 15th May, 1868**_

The warm and crisp autumn air had started to get colder, bringing the inevitable winter to the country. The sun had risen hours earlier and brought the sounds of Kookaburras and cicadas, all the animals communicating with each other through their individual songs. The day was perfect, a grand day for a journey out to a lake to have a swim, or a nice day for a picnic. For others however, the day was only going to bring sadness. As Millie sat with her tutor, Miss Hildegard, she thought of what she was going to do later that day after her lessons.

"Millie!" shouted a voice with a clear and fading Prussian accent, bringing Millie out of her thoughts, only to see her tutor leaning over the small table that she was working on.

"Yes?" Millie asked Miss Hildegard, her face showing confusion to why she was getting shouted at.

"Pay attention! What do you think your father and great grandfather are paying me to do!" The woman shouted at Millie. The small girl recoiling to gain distance from the older woman shouting at her.

"I'm sorry, I'll pay attention Miss Hildegard," Millie said to the Prussian woman, cowering in slight fear, knowing that if she entered her mind again without forethought, she would get thrown into the small closet that was adjacent to the room's door.

"Are you now? You say that and the next time I turn around you'll be in a different place again!" Miss Hildegard said, snapping her fingers when Millie tried to go back to her thoughts.

"I won't, I promise," Millie said quietly, more to herself than the tutor.

"Okay then, let's begin where we left off," Miss Hildegard said as she stood up properly and turned back to the small blackboard that was in the room.

"I wonder if great grandfather will let me fish today?" Millie thought to herself as she played the memory of her great grandfather telling her that he would take her fishing later that day.

"I knew it!" screeched a voice, Millie getting violently pulled out of her thoughts and making her aware of the pain that she was feeling as a unknown hand pulled her out of her seat by the girl's hair.

"Let go!" screamed Millie as she tried to get the hand to release her hair in-between her screams of pain.

"This ought to teach you!" shouted a voice as Millie was shoved into a small closet. The small girl falling face first into the wall, her head spinning as she tried to lift her head.

"No!" Millie screamed one last time as she turned and saw the fuzzy image of the doors to the small closet slamming shut and a soft click of the doors being locked, engulfing the girl in darkness.

"Help." Millie whimpered one last time before she lost consciousness.

Millie soon awoke in the small space, still encased by darkness. Millie shortly began to shiver because of a cold feeling of fear that the dark closet brought to Millie's mind, the feeling running up her spine involuntarily after she had awoken.

"Why am I different?" Millie asked herself as she curled into a tight ball to conserve her warmth.

"Millie!" Shouted a aged voice that held a tone of authority from the other side of the room that the closet was in.

"H-Here." Millie said, her voice cracking as she spoke, making it nearly impossible to hear.

"Where are you?" The voice said again, it's owner not hearing her broken cries. Thinking of an idea, Millie started to kick and punch the door to the closet.

"Millie!" gasped the voice as the person outside of the closet walked over to the doors and unlocked it, opening the door and seeing Millie laying in the small space.

"G-Great grandfather?" Millie said as her vision cleared and she saw the kind and caring face of her great grandfather.

"I'm here Millie, it's okay," her great grandfather said as he lifted Millie off the floor and into his arms, hugging the girl tightly.

"I'm sorry!" Millie shouted as she started to cry into her great grandfather's shoulder, the man rubbing her back lightly.

"It's okay Millie, it's not your fault," Her great grandfather said softly to the girl, hoping to comfort her as much as he could.


End file.
